1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates an image pickup apparatus having a zoom function.
2. Description of the Related Art
Some of image pickup apparatuses such as digital video cameras and digital still cameras have an optical zoom function for changing focal distance (i.e., zoom magnification) by moving a zoom lens and/or an electronic zoom function for changing zoom magnification by electronically enlarging or reducing shot image. Such image pickup apparatus has a zoom lever for changing zoom speed (i.e., zoom magnification change speed). The zoom speed generally increases with increase of an amount of movement of the zoom lever. By operating the zoom lever, a user can select a desired zoom speed to set a desired zoom magnification (photographic view angle).
In recent years, image pickup apparatuses have been demanded to be downsized. To that end, the zoom lever has also been downsized. However, it is difficult for a user to finely adjust the amount of movement of a small-sized zoom lever to finely set the zoom speed.
Thus, there has been proposed an image pickup apparatus in which the zoom lever can be pressed down from a normal position to a maximum zoom speed position, whereby a zoom speed change range in the normal position of zoom lever (not including a maximum zoom speed) can be made narrow. With this arrangement, an amount of zoom speed change relative to an amount of zoom lever movement can be made small in the normal zoom lever position, whereby the operability can be improved. However, there is a fear that a user unintentionally presses down the zoom lever.
Also proposed is an image pickup apparatus having a zoom lever that can be pressed down to switch a zoom mode between optical zoom mode and electronic zoom mode, so as to select one of zoom speeds corresponding to the two zoom modes (Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2008-309880). However, also with this proposed apparatus, a user unintentionally presses down the zoom lever in some cases. In addition, the zoom speed cannot be changed according to the amount of movement of the zoom lever by the arrangement in which one of the zoom speeds corresponding to the two zoom modes is selected.